12/19/2007

What we have been calling the "Union Solidarity Fund" is now officially called the Writers Guild Foundation Industry Support Fund. Our friends at the Foundation have stepped up to coordinate the tremendous outpouring of generosity from businesses, fans, writers, actors, directors and the public to help non-WGA professionals affected by the strike. We will link to information on how to apply for assistance as soon as it is on the Foundation site.

The Foundation is accepting donations now. Send them to 7000 W. Third St. LA 90048, and indicate "Industry Support Fund."

I would have been happy to make a $50 contribution by Paypal or such today to the fund, but the site doesn't really seem to support that at the moment. At least not and indicate dedication to the Industry Support Fund portion of the Foundation's mission.

I'm sure the other things the WGF does are worthwhile as well, but right now I'd really like to contribute to the IGF portion and with some means easier than a check. I'm an internet guy, after all, that's why I'm reading this blog.

Clearly WGF is used to dealing with larger size contributors generally. I hope they will make a few quick changes to allow fans to help out easily with fan-size contributions electronically.

Btw, since obviously the organizers of United Hollywood are hep cats, internet-wise, perhaps you'd consider doing your own paypal gateway here for donating to the ISF of WGF. . . that might be the easiest all around. . .

What an amazing letter. Sorry for the loss of your mother. She sounds like she, and your father, were great parents. Thank you for taking the time to write, I know that for me, some times it's hard to get back out there every day. It's hard to fight day in and day out. Your letter reminds me of why we have to.

This is very important. I doubt it will go a long way to counter Short's strike breaking propaganda but every little bit will help. By the way I don't know if you have seen this from the WGA supporters site (2500 fans like me) at livejournal.

http://community.livejournal.com/wga_supporters/167675.html

Whedon Fans: Cash for the Crewsvia Fans For The WGA by sl_podcast on 12/18/07

Firefly Immediate Assistance legends (and all around cool people) Allyson and Kristen are running a contest. It's to support the crews that are out of work due to the WGA strike. Basically, donate money and have a chance to win signed scripts. These are the lovely people that threw a party for the Angel cast and crew a few years back.

Now they're back to help the crews that are out of work because of the strike.

First of all, I would like to offer condolences to Paul on the loss of his mother. I know how hard it is to lose your mother. Like you, my daughter is a writer, and like your mother, I will do all I can to encourage her in that.

My primary reason for writing, though, is because of an idea I have had since finding out that writers only received 4 cents from a $20 dvd. I was completely shocked by that information because without a good story (furnished by a writer) there would be no dvd worth watching.

I have a very limited income and I do have a disabled child to support, so I cannot donate any great sum to your cause, though I would love to do so. I can, however, send $1 to the Writers' Guild each time I buy a dvd. I will supply the name of the dvd so that the guild can pass it on to the writer or writers to whom it is due. I would also like to encourage everyone else to do the same.

I know things get tougher as the strike lingers on, but hang in there. The fans are totally behind you. You are the foundation of each movie, tv show, and other entertainment that we enjoy. You deserve to be compensated accordingly.

Please let me know if my idea is feasible according to the Guild's regulations. If it isn't, I'd still love to find a comparable alternative, such as donating a dollar to a general fund like the one discussed in this post. I just want to support the writers however I can.

Thanks mucho for the tip, now acted upon. :) Can someone please tell the MPTV folks tho that they aren't using an SSL secured page (HTTPS) to take credit card payments and it would make a whole bunch of internet-savy people feel better if they were?

I've been an avid Movie/TV fan for nearly my entire life, and an aspiring writer for nearly that long. I am amazingly inspired by every writer who has been impacted by this strike. While there have been hostilities and fur flying back and forth in the media, it is these personal stories that really mean the most.

Maybe someday I'll actually produce something that is worthy of providing me entry in to this prestigious guild. Should that ever occur, I know that I will reflect back on these events, and how much others have endured to provide for future writers.

Hi, some friends and I from the wga_supporters group on Live Journal have organized an amateur art auction site where people can sign up to donate original graphic art, drawings, short fiction and poetry, etc and it gets sold/auctioned off to benefit the Industry Support Fund, the Actors' Fund, etc (we leave it up to the artists and donors to choose a particular support organization, but strongly recommend one of those.)

We're at http://community.livejournal.com/strike_support/profile and hope to provide people with a fun way to donate while supporting emerging artists and enjoying some great work! Also this is a way to get involved and help out if you can't make a cash donation at this time.

Links from Around the Web

The Big Introduction

Who are you people? United Hollywood advocates for working people in the entertainment industry facing the digital revolution. We are not an official site of any guild or union, so our opinions are our own. Founded by a group of WGA strike captains, our contributors are both writers and non-writers. If you've got any questions or stories we should know about, email us at unitedhollywood [at] gmail [dot] com.

Video Blogging

Check out U.H. videos on our YouTube page. Here are a few from our page and from some of our friends: